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The Essential Neruda

Selected Poems
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( 6,723 ratings, 375 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Essential Neruda is a thoughtfully curated bilingual collection presenting 50 of Pablo Neruda's most vital poems, selected by prominent poets and scholars from Chile and the U.S. This edition spans the full range of Neruda's distinctive styles and themes, with expert translations by renowned translators such as Alistair Reid and Stephen Mitchell. Including previously untranslated works, it offers an accessible yet comprehensive introduction to Neruda's poetic legacy, capturing the essence of his lifelong literary journey.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$4700

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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This collection is perfect for students, poetry enthusiasts, and anyone seeking an authoritative yet approachable introduction to Pablo Neruda's verse, especially those interested in bilingual editions and the art of translation.

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New translations of Neruda's most important poems, gathered to celebrate the centennial of his birth.

Timed to coincide with the celebrations of Neruda's 100th birthday. Neruda will be in the media a great deal in 2004 and we can take advantage of that. FS&G is publishing a Collected Works (800 pages, $40 cloth edition) next year as well -- we can possibly be included in round-ups. An attractive poster/postcard can be produced ahead of time for bookstores, to market the book. Neruda's a beloved poet, and those would be guaranteed popular items. The Neruda Foundation in Chile will work with us to sponsor readings and presentations both in Chile and the U.S. to celebrate Neruda's birthday and the release of this collection. They are going to distribute the book in Latin America. Featured book in the Academy of American Poets "National Poetry Month" campaign, April 2004

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

This bilingual collection of Neruda's most essential poems will prove indispensable. Selected by a team of poets and prominent Neruda scholars in both Chile and the U.S., this is a definitive selection that draws from the entire breadth and width of Neruda's various styles and themes. An impressive group of translators, including Alistair Reid, Stephen Mitchell, Robert Hass, Stephen Kessler, and Jack Hirschman, have come together to revisit or completely retranslate the poems. A handful of previously untranslated works are included as well. This selection sets the standard for a general, high-quality introduction to Neruda's complete oeuvre.

The Essential Neruda, a 200-page edition, offers 50 of Neruda's key poems. "The call for a more accessible collection of Neruda's important poems is answered with City Lights' The Essential Neruda. The editors and translators know how to extract gold from a lifetime of prolific writing. If you want a handy Neruda companion and don't know where to begin, this is it." - The Bloomsbury Review

"...The Essential Neruda will prove to be, for most readers, the best introduction to Neruda available in English. In fact, I can think of few other books that have given me so much delight so easily. At only 234 pages (bilingual), it somehow manages to convey the fullness of Neruda's poetic arc: Reading it is like reading the autobiography of a poetic sensibility (granted, the abridged version)." - The Austin Chronicle

"This book is a must-have for any reader interested in a definitive sampling of the most essential poems by one whom many consider one of the best poets of the 20th century." - Mike Nobles, Tulsa World

"What better way to celebrate the hundred years of Neruda's glorious residence on our earth than this selection of crucial works - in both languages! - by one of the greatest poets of all time. A splendid way to begin a love affair with our Pablo or, having already succumbed to his infinite charms, revisit him passionately again and again and yet again." - Ariel Dorfman, author of Konfidenz and The Nanny and the Iceberg

"If the notion had struck Pablo Neruda, I am quite sure that like Fernando Pessoa and Antonio Machado he would have given birth to what the former called heteronyms. Like Pessoa especially, Neruda can be several poets according to where he is and when and what his mood might be. It is quite fitting therefore that his work in this anthology be shared by various translators, for, ideally, a translator is but another heteronym speaking in a different tongue and at a different time. Neruda is well served here by these other voices of his." - Gregory Rabassa

Pablo Neruda was born in Chile in 1904. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Praised as the ideal introduction to Neruda's work in English, The Essential Neruda is acclaimed for its accessibility and high-quality selection. Bloomsbury Review highlights its value as a handy companion for those new to Neruda, while Austin Chronicle applauds the book for conveying the fullness of Neruda's poetic sensibility with ease and delight. Tulsa World calls it a must-have definitive sampling from one of the best poets of the 20th century.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780872864283

Publisher: City Lights Books

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 13 May 2004

Country: United States

Imprint: City Lights Books

Illustration: Illustrations

Contributors:

  • Edited by Mark Eisner

Audience: General / adult, Tertiary education

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 17.0mm

Width: 139.0mm

Height: 213.0mm

Weight: 297g

Pages: 200

About the Author

Pablo Neruda is regarded as the greatest Latin American poet of the 20th century. Winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1971, his breadth of vision and wide range of themes are extraordinary, and his work continues to inspire new generations of writers. Mark Eisner, poet and translator, is a Visiting Scholar at Stanford University's Center for Latin American Studies. He has wandered and worked throughout Latin America from Cuba to Chile for years and is currently directing and producing a documentary film on Pablo Neruda.

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